@ilena: "<url>
Breast Implants: A Women's Choice, But a Safe Choice?
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
By Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D.
Women have the right to buy products that will make them look better
or feel better about themselves. Are silicone breast implants part of
that inalienable right to choose?
The companies that make silicone breast implants (search), the plastic
surgeons who use them, and the women who want them are all focused on
that right, and angry that it has been restricted for the last 13
years. They question the motives of government officials, women�s
organizations, and health advocates that question that right.
On the other side of the debate, consumer groups, public health
advocates and others remind us that the Food and Drug Administration
has the responsibility of approving medical products only if they are
proven safe and effective. Implants are especially worrisome because
it costs thousands of dollars to have them removed. If these products
are risky or can break inside the body, that risk should outweigh the
benefits. 
Breast implants have become such a hot topic that pundits who
otherwise wouldn�t talk about the FDA or women�s issues have
gravitated toward the topic. Many pundits have become instant experts
on the subject, even if they have never spoken to any woman about her
implant experiences and never read any of the safety studies they
quote.
But like most hot topics, this one is complicated. If you talk to
women, read the research, and try to figure out why there are such
strong opinions on both sides of the issue, you�ll find out why the
controversy has continued for 15 years and is not yet resolved.
This is what we already know about breast implants:
Dozens of studies of women who had implants for a short time find no
significant increase in diseases. Most of these studies are funded by
companies with a financial interest in breast implants. Studies
conducted by implant makers and analyzed by the FDA found that more
than one in three patients report complications such as breast pain
and hardness and the need for additional surgery within the first
three years. 
Only two studies have been conducted on the health of women with
leaking silicone implants. One, conducted by FDA scientists, found a
significant increase in fibromyalgia (search) and other autoimmune
diseases (search). A study funded by a silicone manufacturer found an
increase in autoimmune symptoms such as fatigue and mental confusion
but not in diagnosed diseases.
Studies conducted by the National Cancer Institute are the
best-designed because they compare women who had implants for at least
seven years to other plastic surgery patients and to women in the
general population. They found that all plastic surgery patients,
including breast augmentation patients, tend to be healthier and
wealthier than women of the same age in the general population.
Plastic surgery patients also have similar health habits. 
However, compared to other plastic surgery patients, breast
augmentation patients are twice as likely to die of brain cancer,
three times as likely to die of lung cancer, and four times as likely
to commit suicide. They are more likely to report autoimmune diseases,
but their medical records indicate that patients are not always
accurate in their reporting (for example, many women who report having
rheumatoid arthritis (search) actually have osteo-arthritis (search)
instead). These government scientists concluded that the results were
inconclusive and more research was needed.
The testimony of women with breast implants was surprisingly
consistent with these research studies. Many of the women praising
their implants had them for just a year or two. The women who were
testifying against implants usually had them for 10 years or more.
Many spoke of being happy with their implants for years, and then
slowly becoming disabled from chronic fatigue, mental confusion, and
aches and pains at the ripe old age of 32. After years of being told
that their illness was unrelated to their implants, they eventually
had their implants removed, and only then learned that the implants
had ruptured and were leaking.
Ed Brent, a widower from Atlanta, described his wife, P.J., as very
happy with her implants for years. When she became ill, she sought
medical treatment but none of the doctors were able to help her.
Frustrated by the lack of effective medical care and feeling guilty
because her children became seriously ill after she breastfed them
with implants, P.J. Brent committed suicide. 
Ed testified that after her death, doctors found exceptionally high
levels of platinum in her blood, and in the blood of the children she
breastfed after implants (but not those breastfed before). Platinum is
a potentially toxic substance that is used to make breast implants.
Research published last year found high levels in the breast milk,
blood and urine of women with implants, compared to other women.
This is what we don�t know about breast implants:
We don�t know how long they last, although many studies suggest that
10-15 years is likely.
We don�t know how often they leak silicone outside the implant area,
but the FDA estimates one in four women with leaking implants have
such leakage. Will that eventually become 100 percent if a woman
doesn�t have her implants removed? Nobody knows.
We don�t know what percentage of women will get sick from breast
implants that are intact and what percentage will get sick from breast
implants that are leaking. No studies have been done to examine that
over time.
We don�t know if breast implants make most women feel better about
themselves. According to the companies� own studies, women who got
breast implants two years earlier tend to feel worse about their lives
and themselves, not better, than they felt before getting their
implants.
Can women make an informed choice about breast implants? Most women
who make a decision about breast implants get their information from
their plastic surgeon, the implant maker�s patient booklet, or the
Internet. The plastic surgeons tend to be very positive, the company
brochures tend to be confusing, and the Internet has information
ranging from extremely positive to extremely negative and everything
in-between.
The bottom line: men and women have a right to choose safe medical
products, and it is the FDA�s job to determine if a medical product is
safe. Whether the product is a painkiller, an anti-depressant, or a
breast implant, FDA approval should be made on science, not wishful
thinking or philosophical musings about choice.
Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D. is president of the National Research Center
for Women & Families, a nonprofit research and education organization
that advocates to improve the health and safety of women, children,
and families.
== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Uncensored-Secure Usenet News==
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Breast Implants: A Women's Choice, But a Safe Choice?
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
By Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D.
Women have the right to buy products that will make them look better
or feel better about themselves. Are silicone breast implants part of
that inalienable right to choose?
The companies that make silicone breast implants (search), the plastic
surgeons who use them, and the women who want them are all focused on
that right, and angry that it has been restricted for the last 13
years. They question the motives of government officials, women�s
organizations, and health advocates that question that right.
On the other side of the debate, consumer groups, public health
advocates and others remind us that the Food and Drug Administration
has the responsibility of approving medical products only if they are
proven safe and effective. Implants are especially worrisome because
it costs thousands of dollars to have them removed. If these products
are risky or can break inside the body, that risk should outweigh the
benefits. 
Breast implants have become such a hot topic that pundits who
otherwise wouldn�t talk about the FDA or women�s issues have
gravitated toward the topic. Many pundits have become instant experts
on the subject, even if they have never spoken to any woman about her
implant experiences and never read any of the safety studies they
quote.
But like most hot topics, this one is complicated. If you talk to
women, read the research, and try to figure out why there are such
strong opinions on both sides of the issue, you�ll find out why the
controversy has continued for 15 years and is not yet resolved.
This is what we already know about breast implants:
Dozens of studies of women who had implants for a short time find no
significant increase in diseases. Most of these studies are funded by
companies with a financial interest in breast implants. Studies
conducted by implant makers and analyzed by the FDA found that more
than one in three patients report complications such as breast pain
and hardness and the need for additional surgery within the first
three years. 
Only two studies have been conducted on the health of women with
leaking silicone implants. One, conducted by FDA scientists, found a
significant increase in fibromyalgia (search) and other autoimmune
diseases (search). A study funded by a silicone manufacturer found an
increase in autoimmune symptoms such as fatigue and mental confusion
but not in diagnosed diseases.
Studies conducted by the National Cancer Institute are the
best-designed because they compare women who had implants for at least
seven years to other plastic surgery patients and to women in the
general population. They found that all plastic surgery patients,
including breast augmentation patients, tend to be healthier and
wealthier than women of the same age in the general population.
Plastic surgery patients also have similar health habits. 
However, compared to other plastic surgery patients, breast
augmentation patients are twice as likely to die of brain cancer,
three times as likely to die of lung cancer, and four times as likely
to commit suicide. They are more likely to report autoimmune diseases,
but their medical records indicate that patients are not always
accurate in their reporting (for example, many women who report having
rheumatoid arthritis (search) actually have osteo-arthritis (search)
instead). These government scientists concluded that the results were
inconclusive and more research was needed.
The testimony of women with breast implants was surprisingly
consistent with these research studies. Many of the women praising
their implants had them for just a year or two. The women who were
testifying against implants usually had them for 10 years or more.
Many spoke of being happy with their implants for years, and then
slowly becoming disabled from chronic fatigue, mental confusion, and
aches and pains at the ripe old age of 32. After years of being told
that their illness was unrelated to their implants, they eventually
had their implants removed, and only then learned that the implants
had ruptured and were leaking.
Ed Brent, a widower from Atlanta, described his wife, P.J., as very
happy with her implants for years. When she became ill, she sought
medical treatment but none of the doctors were able to help her.
Frustrated by the lack of effective medical care and feeling guilty
because her children became seriously ill after she breastfed them
with implants, P.J. Brent committed suicide. 
Ed testified that after her death, doctors found exceptionally high
levels of platinum in her blood, and in the blood of the children she
breastfed after implants (but not those breastfed before). Platinum is
a potentially toxic substance that is used to make breast implants.
Research published last year found high levels in the breast milk,
blood and urine of women with implants, compared to other women.
This is what we don�t know about breast implants:
We don�t know how long they last, although many studies suggest that
10-15 years is likely.
We don�t know how often they leak silicone outside the implant area,
but the FDA estimates one in four women with leaking implants have
such leakage. Will that eventually become 100 percent if a woman
doesn�t have her implants removed? Nobody knows.
We don�t know what percentage of women will get sick from breast
implants that are intact and what percentage will get sick from breast
implants that are leaking. No studies have been done to examine that
over time.
We don�t know if breast implants make most women feel better about
themselves. According to the companies� own studies, women who got
breast implants two years earlier tend to feel worse about their lives
and themselves, not better, than they felt before getting their
implants.
Can women make an informed choice about breast implants? Most women
who make a decision about breast implants get their information from
their plastic surgeon, the implant maker�s patient booklet, or the
Internet. The plastic surgeons tend to be very positive, the company
brochures tend to be confusing, and the Internet has information
ranging from extremely positive to extremely negative and everything
in-between.
The bottom line: men and women have a right to choose safe medical
products, and it is the FDA�s job to determine if a medical product is
safe. Whether the product is a painkiller, an anti-depressant, or a
breast implant, FDA approval should be made on science, not wishful
thinking or philosophical musings about choice.
Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D. is president of the National Research Center
for Women & Families, a nonprofit research and education organization
that advocates to improve the health and safety of women, children,
and families.
== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Uncensored-Secure Usenet News==
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Breast Implants: A Women's Choice, But a Safe Choice?
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
By Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D.
Women have the right to buy products that will make them look better
or feel better about themselves. Are silicone breast implants part of
that inalienable right to choose?
The companies that make silicone breast implants (search), the plastic
surgeons who use them, and the women who want them are all focused on
that right, and angry that it has been restricted for the last 13
years. They question the motives of government officials, women�s
organizations, and health advocates that question that right.
On the other side of the debate, consumer groups, public health
advocates and others remind us that the Food and Drug Administration
has the responsibility of approving medical products only if they are
proven safe and effective. Implants are especially worrisome because
it costs thousands of dollars to have them removed. If these products
are risky or can break inside the body, that risk should outweigh the
benefits. 
Breast implants have become such a hot topic that pundits who
otherwise wouldn�t talk about the FDA or women�s issues have
gravitated toward the topic. Many pundits have become instant experts
on the subject, even if they have never spoken to any woman about her
implant experiences and never read any of the safety studies they
quote.
But like most hot topics, this one is complicated. If you talk to
women, read the research, and try to figure out why there are such
strong opinions on both sides of the issue, you�ll find out why the
controversy has continued for 15 years and is not yet resolved.
This is what we already know about breast implants:
Dozens of studies of women who had implants for a short time find no
significant increase in diseases. Most of these studies are funded by
companies with a financial interest in breast implants. Studies
conducted by implant makers and analyzed by the FDA found that more
than one in three patients report complications such as breast pain
and hardness and the need for additional surgery within the first
three years. 
Only two studies have been conducted on the health of women with
leaking silicone implants. One, conducted by FDA scientists, found a
significant increase in fibromyalgia (search) and other autoimmune
diseases (search). A study funded by a silicone manufacturer found an
increase in autoimmune symptoms such as fatigue and mental confusion
but not in diagnosed diseases.
Studies conducted by the National Cancer Institute are the
best-designed because they compare women who had implants for at least
seven years to other plastic surgery patients and to women in the
general population. They found that all plastic surgery patients,
including breast augmentation patients, tend to be healthier and
wealthier than women of the same age in the general population.
Plastic surgery patients also have similar health habits. 
However, compared to other plastic surgery patients, breast
augmentation patients are twice as likely to die of brain cancer,
three times as likely to die of lung cancer, and four times as likely
to commit suicide. They are more likely to report autoimmune diseases,
but their medical records indicate that patients are not always
accurate in their reporting (for example, many women who report having
rheumatoid arthritis (search) actually have osteo-arthritis (search)
instead). These government scientists concluded that the results were
inconclusive and more research was needed.
The testimony of women with breast implants was surprisingly
consistent with these research studies. Many of the women praising
their implants had them for just a year or two. The women who were
testifying against implants usually had them for 10 years or more.
Many spoke of being happy with their implants for years, and then
slowly becoming disabled from chronic fatigue, mental confusion, and
aches and pains at the ripe old age of 32. After years of being told
that their illness was unrelated to their implants, they eventually
had their implants removed, and only then learned that the implants
had ruptured and were leaking.
Ed Brent, a widower from Atlanta, described his wife, P.J., as very
happy with her implants for years. When she became ill, she sought
medical treatment but none of the doctors were able to help her.
Frustrated by the lack of effective medical care and feeling guilty
because her children became seriously ill after she breastfed them
with implants, P.J. Brent committed suicide. 
Ed testified that after her death, doctors found exceptionally high
levels of platinum in her blood, and in the blood of the children she
breastfed after implants (but not those breastfed before). Platinum is
a potentially toxic substance that is used to make breast implants.
Research published last year found high levels in the breast milk,
blood and urine of women with implants, compared to other women.
This is what we don�t know about breast implants:
We don�t know how long they last, although many studies suggest that
10-15 years is likely.
We don�t know how often they leak silicone outside the implant area,
but the FDA estimates one in four women with leaking implants have
such leakage. Will that eventually become 100 percent if a woman
doesn�t have her implants removed? Nobody knows.
We don�t know what percentage of women will get sick from breast
implants that are intact and what percentage will get sick from breast
implants that are leaking. No studies have been done to examine that
over time.
We don�t know if breast implants make most women feel better about
themselves. According to the companies� own studies, women who got
breast implants two years earlier tend to feel worse about their lives
and themselves, not better, than they felt before getting their
implants.
Can women make an informed choice about breast implants? Most women
who make a decision about breast implants get their information from
their plastic surgeon, the implant maker�s patient booklet, or the
Internet. The plastic surgeons tend to be very positive, the company
brochures tend to be confusing, and the Internet has information
ranging from extremely positive to extremely negative and everything
in-between.
The bottom line: men and women have a right to choose safe medical
products, and it is the FDA�s job to determine if a medical product is
safe. Whether the product is a painkiller, an anti-depressant, or a
breast implant, FDA approval should be made on science, not wishful
thinking or philosophical musings about choice.
Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D. is president of the National Research Center
for Women & Families, a nonprofit research and education organization
that advocates to improve the health and safety of women, children,
and families."
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